An appeals court has ruled a Cincinnati construction company must pay $4 million to the family of a Tennessee couple killed when they slammed into the back of a dump truck entering an interstate in a construction zone.

A Warren County jury in 2013 found John R. Jergensen Co. was 25 percent liable for the 2009 accident that killed Nicholas and Amanda Poe. Nicholas Poe was found to be 51 percent responsible, while the Ohio Department of Transportation was 24 percent liable, the jury found.

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A dump truck entered the left lane on Interstate 75 in Warren County around 9 p.m. on Oct. 17, 2009 and traveled about 25 seconds before the Poes' vehicle crashed into the back of it at 79 mph.

The company sought to overturn that verdict, arguing Nicholas Poe was solely responsible, but the 12th Ohio District Court of Appeals on Monday upheld the judgment, saying the company could've taken steps to reduce chances of an accident.

Evidence photos "indicated that dirt obscured much of the back of the truck, including the license-plate area and reflective tape that had been placed on the back of the truck," the ruling stated.